Georgy Zhukov's first big victory: facts about Khalkhin Gol

The fighting at Khalkhin Gol (a river in Mongolia) or the “Nomon Khan Incident” between Soviet-Mongolian forces and the Japanese armed forces began on May 11 and continued until mid-September 1939.

Despite the fact that historical In references, this confrontation is called a local conflict that ended with the unconditional victory of the USSR; some experts dubbed it the “Second Russian-Japanese War.”

It is worth noting that victory in this conflict was of strategic importance for the Soviet Union. The thing is that literally a couple of kilometers from the real border between Manchukuo (a puppet state that was completely dependent on Japan) and Mongolia, the Japanese were building a railway, which in the future would allow them to transfer their weapons and personnel to border of the USSR in the area of ​​Irkutsk and Lake Baikal. To ensure the safety of this highway, the Japanese planned to seize part of the territory of Mongolia.

Quite a lot has been said and written about how the battle took place and at what difficult cost this important victory was given to our country. At the same time, there are a number of facts that have been left aside, but are of considerable importance.

For example, it was in the battles at Khalkhin Gol that Soviet tank crews received their baptism of fire. The battle, called the “Bayan-Tsagan Massacre,” became the first major one in the history of the Red Army. tank confrontation. Soviet troops won it.

In addition, according to many historians, it was the incident at Nomon Khan that was the reason that, despite Hitler’s “hints” and calls, Japan did not dare to attack the USSR in 1941.

The first “Gold Stars” to the Heroes of the USSR were also awarded precisely after the victory of the Red Army at Khalkhin Gol.

Finally, the conflict with the Japanese in 1939 became Georgy Zhukov's first great victory. Having replaced Nikolai Feklenko as commander of the 57th Special Corps on June 12, 1939, he first showed his talent as a commander and led the Red Army to an important victory.

Comments

[DrEng02]

"The battle, called the Bayan-Tsagan Massacre, became the first major tank confrontation in the history of the Red Army."
The Japanese didn't have tanks there... Unfortunately, this battle already showed what became the reason for the defeat of the tank formations of the Red Army near Brody in 1941 - entering the battle on the move, without the interaction of military branches...

[AndreyKam_Z]

The Japanese didn't have tanks there...

I wonder where they disappeared to?
As of June 25.06.1939, 135, Japanese troops had 10.08.1939 tanks, and as of August 182, XNUMX, XNUMX tanks.
And don't open America. Zhukov K.G. the risk of using tanks without infantry support was well known. Only he did not have infantry (there were scattered units driven out from the river by the Japanese), so the 11th Tank Brigade was sent on the march to attack the Japanese units until they dug in. Zhukov took a great risk by abandoning the units from the march separately, but he understood that time was on the side of the Japanese, their roads were a couple of tens of kilometers away, unlike the Soviet troops, several hundred kilometers away. (Read the memoirs; they even carried water tens of kilometers away).

[DrEng02]

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

And don't open America.

what for? it was already discovered by Columbus or the Vikings...

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

and 10.08.1939/182/XNUMX XNUMX

And what does August have to do with it? And in July, the tanks seemed to be on the eastern bank, and Mount Bain on the western...
As far as I remember, there were no tank battles on the west bank... do you have other information?

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

Zhukov K.G. the risk of using tanks without infantry support was well known

This worked against the Japanese, but against the Germans in 41 it no longer worked... and the tank losses of 39 anticipated the losses of 41... By the way, why the rush, the Japanese were digging in and not continuing the offensive...

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

Read the memories

which year?

[AndreyKam_Z]

what for? it was already discovered by Columbus or the Vikings... bully

Well done. So don't try to reopen it.

And what does August have to do with it? And in July, the tanks seemed to be on the eastern bank, and Mount Bain on the western...
As far as I remember, there were no tank battles on the west bank... do you have other information?

Read the chronology of the battles and you will understand.
The group under the command of Lieutenant General Yasuoka had, in addition to infantry and cavalry, two tank regiments.
There were no tank battles, but this does not mean the opponents lacked tanks. The Japanese had only light tanks and their performance characteristics were many times inferior to ours, so they did not engage in direct opposition.

This happened against the Japanese, but against the Germans in 41 it no longer... request and the tank losses in 39 anticipated the losses of 41... By the way - why the rush, the Japanese dug in and did not continue the offensive...

In 1941 the situation was different, but now we are talking about 1939. The Japanese began to dig in because their offensive had failed, and the continuation of positional battles was not beneficial to us.

what year? hi

I won’t say about the year, but let’s take a look at Zhukov and Smushkevich.

[DrEng02]

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

So don't try to reopen it.

Pay this to yourself...

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

Тthere were no anchor battles, but this does not mean that the opponents have no tanks.

author: "became the first in the history of the Red Army major tank confrontation."
If it's not a secret, what are you arguing with?

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

the Japanese had only light tanks and they were many times over in terms of performance characteristics

Do you think their 37 mm gun did not penetrate the armor of BT tanks or armored cars?

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

In 1941 the situation was different,

from your point of view - you don’t want to see the general....

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

The Japanese began to dig in because their offensive had failed

those. There was nowhere to rush, there was time to bring up the infantry and artillery...

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

and the continuation of positional battles was not beneficial to us.

how? the enemy is on the bridgehead, supplies are under our fire... let him lose troops...

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

I won’t say about the year, but let’s take a look at Zhukov and Smushkevich.

Did Smushkevich manage to write his memoirs?

[AndreyKam_Z]

The Japanese didn't have tanks there... request

author: "became the first major tank confrontation in the history of the Red Army."
If it's not a secret, what are you arguing with? hi

Are you playing the fool? This is your statement that there were no tanks there.

Do you think their 37 mm gun did not penetrate the armor of BT tanks or armored cars?

Is the performance characteristics of a tank limited to the gun? Congenial.

those. there was nowhere to rush, there was time to bring up the infantry and artillery... hi

You don’t know the difference between troops in open areas and organized layered defense when troops are dug in.

how? the enemy is on the bridgehead, supplies are under our fire... let him lose troops...

Are you reading the answers? I wrote to you about the difference in logistics.

Did Smushkevich manage to write his memoirs? feel

Yes, there was a mistake, I wrote on the go, Vorozheikin A.

[DrEng02]

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

Are you playing the fool?

you were raised badly...

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

This is your statement that there were no tanks there.

learn to understand the text - “tank confrontation” is a war of tanks... and according to you, it didn’t happen... so who’s playing the fool?

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

Is the performance characteristics of a tank limited to the gun? Congenial.

"tank - cart for a gun"

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

troops in the open

the Japanese have ALREADY organized a defense and dug in - but a day before the infantry arrives, it is not possible to organize a serious defense... learn to think, and not just eat Agitprop...

Quote: AndreyKam_Z

I wrote to you about the difference in logistics.

What am I talking about - did you follow the train across the Khalkin-Gol River?

[stopkran]

Agree. The hack worked with the Japanese, but not with the Germans.

[knn54]

Stalin, summing up the results of the war against the Finns on April 17, 1940, said: “Small episodes in Manchuria, near Lake Khasan or in Mongolia are nonsense, this is not a war - these are individual episodes in a strictly limited area. Japan was afraid of starting a war, we are too they didn’t want to, and some testing of strength on the patch showed that Japan had failed and we had 2-3 divisions in Mongolia, the same number in Khasan. Our army has not yet waged a real, serious war.”
On May 5, 1941, speaking to graduates of military academies, Stalin continued this thought: “... many comrades exaggerate the significance of the events at Lake Khasan and Khalkhin Gol, from the point of view of military experience. Here we were dealing not with a modern army, but with an army outdated. Not telling you all this means deceiving you..
Of course, Khasan and Khalkhin Gol played their positive role. Their positive role lies in the fact that in the first and second cases we beat the Japanese. But we learned real experience in restructuring our army from the Russian-Finnish war and from the modern war in the West "...
-The first “Golden Stars” were also awarded to the Heroes of the USSR after the victory of the Red Army at Khalkhin Gol.
By decree of the USSR Central Executive Committee of December 31, 1936, the title of Hero of the Soviet Union was awarded to 17 soldiers and commanders of the Red Army - this was the first award to professional military personnel. 11 pilots and 6 tank crews, volunteers who participated in the Spanish Civil War.

[Fitter65]

Quote: knn54

By decree of the USSR Central Executive Committee of December 31, 1936, the title of Hero of the Soviet Union was awarded to 17 soldiers and commanders of the Red Army - this was the first award to professional military personnel. 11 pilots and 6 tank crews, volunteers who participated in the Spanish Civil War.

First award of the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for military exploits took place on December 31, 1936, when seventeen Red Army commanders who took part in the Spanish Civil War were awarded the title. They were awarded the TITLE OF HERO OF THE SOVIET UNION. If we weren’t awarded, do we feel the difference?!
The Gold Star medal is a badge of honor for persons awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Established on August 1, 1939. On November 4, 1939, the medal for No. 1 was awarded to the Hero of the Soviet Union, pilot A.V. Lyapidevsky, who was awarded the high rank back in 1934. Therefore, the author of the article is practically right in asserting that

The first “Gold Stars” to the Heroes of the USSR were also awarded precisely after the victory of the Red Army at Khalkhin Gol.

After all, taking into account the dates of the decrees, and looking through photo documentaries and newsreels

The awarding of the title of Hero for participation in hostilities at Khalkhin Gol was carried out by decrees of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated August 29, 1939 (31 awarded) and November 17, 1939 (39 awarded)

we will see that the “Golden Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union” began to be awarded precisely after the battles at Khalkhin Gol.

[Frank Muller]

Why, my friend, did you undeservedly offend the heroes of the “Battles of Khasan”? By decree of October 25.10.38, 26, 9 participants in these events were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (of which XNUMX were posthumous, including V. M. Vinevitin, who fired the first shot that marked the beginning of this military conflict). They were all the first heroes to earn this title for the defense of borders and the defense of the Motherland. The Khalkhin-Gol conflict broke out almost ten months after the end of hostilities in Primorye.

[Fitter65]

Quote: Frank Muller

Why, my friend, did you undeservedly offend the heroes of the “Battles of Khasan”?

Why don’t you pay close attention to the essence of the dispute! The conversation was not about those who were first awarded this title, but when they began to present the insignia of the Hero of the Soviet Union. Namely the "Gold Star".

Quote: Fitter65

The Gold Star medal is a badge of honor for persons awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Established on August 1, 1939.

do you see the difference?

[Frank Muller]

The confusion at Nomonhan was only one of the reasons that kept the Japanese military from further expansion into the Soviet Transbaikalia and Primorye, although it fueled revanchist sentiments in the reactionary government circles of the Land of the Rising Sun. In addition to the fact that the Red Army showed itself to be a much more combat-ready force (than the army of the Russian Empire and the DPR troops), with which jokes turned out to be bad, preference was given to military actions in the direction of the European Asian colonies, which could provide the Japanese military industry with urgently needed raw materials without unnecessary costs for industrial development. In addition, the unexpectedly protracted war with China, victory in which was postponed indefinitely, the duplicity of Hitler, his main ally in the Anti-Comintern Pact, who concluded the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with the USSR without the consent of the Japanese government, forced the implementation of his plans to be postponed "Hachi-go" and "Kantokuen". Postpone, but not abandon them: plans were periodically removed from safes and adjusted. And on the borders with Mongolia and the USSR, right up to the end of the battle of Kursk, military provocations were often staged. By the way, after the completion of the “Nomonhan Events” and subsequent negotiations, some disputed Mongolian territories went to Manchukuo, although not within the boundaries that the Japanese representatives insisted on.

[Frank Muller]

There was no tank confrontation at Bayan-Tsagan (despite mention of this in Zhukov’s “Memories and Reflections”). The archives tell a different story. All Japanese tanks (87 vehicles of the Kunchuling tank brigade of two regiments) remained on the eastern bank, where they suffered the main losses from our field artillery, in firefights with Soviet tanks and BA armored cars - 10. 13 units were irretrievably lost, 14 were evacuated to the rear, 17 repaired on the spot. Long before the end of the fighting, at the end of the first ten days of July), the surviving vehicles were returned to their location in Kunchuling. On the Bayan-Tsagansky battlefield there was not a single unit of Japanese armored vehicles, since they could not cross over the only pontoon bridge that the 23rd Infantry Division had, which could not withstand their weight. However, 37 mm Japanese anti-tank guns, explosive poles, heavy machine guns and petrol bottle throwers in 4 days of fighting disabled 77 Soviet tanks of various types (out of 133 participating) and 37 armored vehicles (plus 6 Mongolian) out of 59 who took part in the attacks. Subsequently, a new personnel tank unit was sent from near Kyiv to Khalkhin-Gol to replenish the 11th Tank Brigade. There is still no clear opinion about the need for Zhukov to use tanks without infantry escort and, most importantly, without preliminary reconnaissance. Many researchers consider this to be unjustified and dictated by the lack of the necessary operational data that allowed him to make the right decision. In the end, the Japanese had already strengthened their positions and a couple of hours (during which Fedyuninsky’s SME, lost in the steppe, arrived) would hardly have been fatal for a properly organized offensive operation. As a result, the Japanese were knocked out from the western bank, from which they retreated along with the surviving artillery and vehicles, blowing up behind them a pontoon bridge that was never destroyed by Soviet artillery and aviation. They evacuated the wounded and many corpses of the dead to the eastern shore, subsequently indicating their sanitary and irretrievable losses at approximately 800 people. According to Soviet data, Fedyuninsky's 24 SME lost 63 soldiers killed and 128 wounded. But this was only a prelude to victory on the banks of the Mongolian river, which Zhukov still had to achieve in the bloody July and August battles.

[Larich]

The Bain-Tsagan massacre showed all the ruthlessness and cruelty of Zhukov to achieve his goals. Not for the sake of the Motherland, but only for a career. Even against a weak opponent there are exorbitant losses and an unclear result. But we did not and do not have Hindenburgs